choosing between open source & commercial cms: options...

Choosing Between Open Source & Commercial CMS: Options & Implications

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Choosing Between Open Source &

Commercial CMS: Options & Implications



• Experience with open source and commercial Web CMS selection and implementation.

• 20 years of experience identifying technical, business and marketing solutions for his clients.

• Clients include Fortune 500 companies, federal government, non-profits and associations.

Presenter Background

SEAN BREEN Founder, CEO

agencyQ



ABOUT SITECORE

• Leader in enterprise-class web content management software (CMS) and marketing platform

• Presence

Offices in 10 countries worldwide, with Partners serving over 50 countries

• Customers

Over 2,500 customers managing over 30,000 web sites worldwide

• Recognized

Gartner 2011 WCM Magic Quadrant “Leader”

Forrester Wave “Strong Performer”

Gartner “Cool Vendor in WCM” 2008

Microsoft ISV Partner of the Year 2003/2004, Microsoft Gold Partner

• Supported

Over 700 Sitecore Certified Partners worldwide



SEAN BREEN Founder, CEO

agencyQ

Webinar Recording & Slides: will be emailed to you within 48 hours after the event

Questions:

type your questions in the chat window to be answered during the Q&A or after the event

More Educational Resources:

visit www.sitecore.net/resources for white papers, eBooks, videos and more.

Questions & Answers

SUZY McKEE Sr. Product Marketing Mgr

Sitecore

http://www.sitecore.net/resources



What are the key differences?

Why they are important and what you should know.

INTRODUCTION

Open Source &

Commercial CMS’s



Access to the Source Code. Source code is the “recipe” that allows software to work.

What is Open Source Software (OSS)?



WHAT IS OPEN SOURCE?

Other important facts about Open Source…

Cost. Lots of confusion on this point. Free vs. Free.

(Beer vs. Speech). You don’t have to have one with the other...





Licenses. Be careful. There are many different kinds of OSS licenses.





Intellectual property rights. Who owns what and how does that impact liability and indemnity?





Support and Upgrades. Who “owns” it and how does support work in the OSS world?





Road-Map. Who “owns” the future of the software and how is it mapped out? The dreaded “fork” or even worse, the dust bin.



A HYBRID APPROACH

Commercial

Open Source

Free as in speech, but not as in beer.

Attempts to deal with IP and liability issues… as well as support and road-map.

Not many successful commercial open source companies…



COMMERCIAL

No Access

$ to $$$

Unique to Vendor

Included (usually)

Clear

OSS

Full Access

No Cost (usually)

Many Variants

Not Included

Not Clear

COMMERCIAL OSS

Full Access

$ to $$$

Unique to Vendor

Included

Not Clear

SOURCE CODE

COST

LICENSE

SUPPORT / UPGRADES

ROAD MAP

Commercial Software Key Difference with Open Source Software



The “real” difference between commercial and OSS software is access to the source code – or recipe that creates the software.

Is this important? Yes and no.

Mostly no.

Why is the

source code

so special?



Unless you’re a highly trained chef, don’t mess with the dish!

… just enjoy it!

You can still pair it with other foods and wine!

• API’s

• Web Services

• Configuration

SOURCE CODE



If you do change the recipe, be careful that…

• You really need to (usually you don’t)

• You don’t do it unless you really know what you are doing

• You are prepared for upgrade issues and are ready to support those changes now and in the future

• There is an increased TCO

SOURCE CODE



Support & Upgrades and the Total Cost of Ownership?

How does OSS or Commercial CMS impact the Total Cost of Ownership

Many variables to think about:

• Purchase Price (usually only a small piece of the TCO)

• Installation and Configuration

• Ongoing Support and Upgrades

• User Adoption and Training



There is no quick and easy formulation as to which is better… but a typical CMS system can last 5 years or more… consider install costs, upgrade costs and training costs.







QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF

• What kind training organization is behind of the software?

• What kind of support organization is behind of the software?

• Are there professionals that are certified to do the work?

• What about upgrades? And if you change the source code?



Things to think about when selecting a Web CMS…

CMS FEATURES & FUNCTIONS

The Basics… most systems do the basic editing functions well. But pay attention when it comes ensuring • Ease of editor use (which helps lower TCO) • Good object model (which allows for good separation of the User

Experience and Design from the underlying content)




ADVANCED WEB CMS FEATURES & FUNCTIONS

Does the Web CMS Support advanced features such as:

• Personalization (Explicit / Implicit)

• Workflow

• Multi Variant Testing

• Integrated Microsites & Email Campaign Management

• Analytics




PLATFORMS

• LAMP Platforms (OSS CMS are most prevalent on this platform)

• Microsoft .NET

• Java

The right platform matters. It can ease integration and reduce TCO.



ADD-ONS & INTEGRATIONS

Does the CMS have supported, tested and quality pre-built integrations to common systems such as • CRM (Dynamics, Salesforce…)

• ERP (Dynamics, Oracle…)

• Ecommerce

Having a CMS that has proven integration can cut TCO, reduce support and improve web user experience.




EXTENSIBILITY

Remember Changing the source code to the core system is usually not the best way to extend the system. Extend through • Platform APIs

• Web Services

• Configuration





BUSINESS CONSIDERATIONS

While the technical and cost considerations of selecting a CMS are important, so are these business consideration.





The size and proficiency of the support organization. You buy software once, but live with it for years.

Responsibility and accountability. Who is responsible for ensuring the software works and is installed correctly? For addressing security issues? Who is accountable?

Do you need “one throat to choke”?





The life-cycle of the typical CMS project is 3 to 7 years.

• How do you assess the future of the CMS?

• How much money is going into R&D?

• What is the road-map?

• If there is a platform change (such as cloud) who makes sure the CMS keeps up with the changes?




TCO – Make sure you look at all the variables. Not just the ones that are easy to count. In our experience with Web CMS, the purchase price of the software is one of the least significant drivers of the TCO. Take the time to make clear all the costs.




The quick guide to when and

how to choose

OSS Web CMS make sense (for most) when: • There is limited need for

advanced marketing features • Limited to no integration with

enterprise systems • Limited risk to organization

due to system failure, down time or support issues

• No changes to the core source code



The quick guide to when and how to choose

Commercial Web CMS make sense (for most) when: • There is a need now (or

soon) for advanced marketing features

• Integration with enterprise systems is needed

• Higher risk to organization due to system failure, down time or support issues

• Clear lines of responsibility and accountability are needed



CLOSING THOUGHTS

a. Right tool for the right job b. What we’ve seen that

works and what doesn’t

choosing between open source & commercial cms: options...

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